Bookmarks - Author has more material at hand

Published: Saturday, April 20, 2013 at 12:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Friday, April 19, 2013 at 8:29 a.m.

Ben Miller has spent the better part of a decade writing about growing up in a most peculiar family in 1970s Davenport, Iowa. Still, he's not worried about running out of material.

The essays in his new book, "River Bend Chronicle," represent barely 25 percent of what he's put down about the family in notes, Miller told a launch party last week at the University of North Carolina Wilmington.

And he says he might have more stories to tell about the Millers – like "froggin' with our Kentucky relatives," or recounting the tale of the family's misbehaving dog, Pinkerton, who was taken to the vet to be put down, only to escape on the way and return to the house. (It's not quite as happy as it sounds: Pinkerton was recaptured and euthanized.)

"River Bend Chronicles" – the fourth release from Lookout Books and its first nonfiction title – began as a series of essays in literary journals across the country including Anticoh Review and the Yale Review. One, "The Re-invention of Ice" – about the father of one of Miller's school friends, who tries to sell ice rinks by mail order – originally appeared in Ecotone, the UNCW literary magazine.

Miller, whose work has been included in "Best American Essays," said he considers his genre more "creative nonfiction" than memoir.

"I want to write about how it's all interwoven," he told an audience at UNCW's Kenan Hall.

A childhood loner who was often left to himself, Miller said he developed a complex inner life "fed by used books and records." To accompany his UNCW appearance, he brought along an LP of Bix Beiderbecke classics and a vintage recording of the New Vaudeville Band playing "Winchester Cathedral."

Wrestling with childhood demons can be exhausting, though, so Miller says he's taking a breather. "Man, I'm going to do some fiction," he said with a grin.

Before that, however, Miller has more immediate plans. "I grew up during the golden age of the children's picture book," he said, so he plans to write some of his own. One of them, he said, will be about "a squid who isn't slippery, so he has to take medication … He forgets his meds and gets stuck to the bottom of a boat."

"That's my dessert after the rich fruitcake of this book," he said.

"Keep writing," Miller advised students in conclusion. "It can humanize you, and your life will be better."

<p>Ben Miller has spent the better part of a decade writing about growing up in a most peculiar family in 1970s Davenport, Iowa. Still, he's not worried about running out of material.</p><p>The essays in his new book, "River Bend Chronicle," represent barely 25 percent of what he's put down about the family in notes, Miller told a launch party last week at the University of North Carolina Wilmington.</p><p>And he says he might have more stories to tell about the Millers – like "froggin' with our Kentucky relatives," or recounting the tale of the family's misbehaving dog, Pinkerton, who was taken to the vet to be put down, only to escape on the way and return to the house. (It's not quite as happy as it sounds: Pinkerton was recaptured and euthanized.)</p><p>"River Bend Chronicles" – the fourth release from Lookout Books and its first nonfiction title – began as a series of essays in literary journals across the country including Anticoh Review and the Yale Review. One, "The Re-invention of Ice" – about the father of one of Miller's school friends, who tries to sell ice rinks by mail order – originally appeared in Ecotone, the <a href="http://www.starnewsonline.com/section/topic71"><b>UNCW</b></a> literary magazine.</p><p>Miller, whose work has been included in "Best American Essays," said he considers his genre more "creative nonfiction" than memoir.</p><p>"I want to write about how it's all interwoven," he told an audience at UNCW's Kenan Hall. </p><p>A childhood loner who was often left to himself, Miller said he developed a complex inner life "fed by used books and records." To accompany his UNCW appearance, he brought along an LP of Bix Beiderbecke classics and a vintage recording of the New Vaudeville Band playing "Winchester Cathedral."</p><p>Wrestling with childhood demons can be exhausting, though, so Miller says he's taking a breather. "Man, I'm going to do some fiction," he said with a grin.</p><p>Before that, however, Miller has more immediate plans. "I grew up during the golden age of the children's picture book," he said, so he plans to write some of his own. One of them, he said, will be about "a squid who isn't slippery, so he has to take medication … He forgets his meds and gets stuck to the bottom of a boat."</p><p>"That's my dessert after the rich fruitcake of this book," he said.</p><p>"Keep writing," Miller advised students in conclusion. "It can humanize you, and your life will be better." </p><p><a href="http://www.starnewsonline.com/section/topic14"><b>Ben Steelman</b></a>: 343-2208</p><p>Ben.Steelman@StarNewsOnline.com</p>